Should The Green Light Be Given to Red Light Cameras?

Published: 2009-12-23

Article provided by Winters & Yonker P.A.
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Statistics show that annually in the U.S., red-light running is to blame for more than 95,000 crashes and 1,000 deaths. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is attempting to reduce these numbers in the Tampa Bay area by contracting with a private company to install and monitor red light surveillance cameras at six intersections.

These six intersections were selected based on frequency of collisions, severity of accidents, and volume of traffic. These intersections include:

• Anderson Road and Waters Avenue
• Bloomingdale and Bell Shoals
• Brandon and Grand Regency boulevards
• Bruce B. Downs and Fletcher
• Sligh and Habana
• Waters and North Dale Mabry

After a two-month trial period beginning October 30, these cameras are now ready for full enforcement. Beginning December 30, sheriff's deputies will mail out citations to drivers who pass through red lights without coming to a complete stop. Those caught on camera will be subject to a $125 fine.

These fines will add up quickly; Hillsborough county officials expect to make $2.4 million each year as a result of these cameras. Despite the expected revenues though, officials say the concern is safety, not money. Critics say it's the other way around.

Supporters of the cameras credit them with reducing the number of crashes and injuries and deterring red-light runners at no cost to the taxpayers. A commonly cited survey released by the Federal Highway Administration in 2005 determined that red-light cameras reduced the amount of potentially deadly side-impact, or "T-bone" crashes.

Conversely though, the study also faulted the cameras for increasing the number of rear-end collisions and injuries from these crashes. Many detractors point to the same study, claiming that it demonstrates how the cameras actually makes things worse, causing drivers to slam on their breaks to avoid going through a yellow light and potentially getting nailed by the camera. A University of South Florida study conducted last year found that red-light cameras actually increase the number and severity of crashes, showing an increase of up to 40 percent in some camera-equipped intersections.

The vast majority of red-light camera tickets issued are given for failing to make a complete stop before making a right turn on a red. When the cameras are strategically placed in busy intersections where rolling right turns are often made, critics begin to compare the cameras to cash machines. A 2009 study of red cameras in the Chicago suburbs estimated that 90 percent of the violations were for making rolling right turns on red; a 2008 study in Los Angeles put the estimate at 80 percent.

Ultimately, only time will determine if the cameras in Hillsborough just mean profits for the county or if they prove the critics wrong and make for safer streets. In the meantime, though, Tampa drivers must take extra precautions when driving to avoid ticketing and avoid accidents.